Genres that need more RPG love

While pondering over horror RPGs, lack thereof, I started thinking of other genres that need more RPGs.

Horror is, obviously, one of them. I'd love to see a game with some heavy Lovecraftian elements, but not just an RPG with some horror-y stuff in it. It's mainly an action/adventure genre these days, sadly, and most future games will probably stay that way, but I think a very dark, possibly apocalpytic RPG could work really well.

The superhero genre is also woefully under-represented. I'd love a game based on, say, the Mutants and Masterminds rules, where you actually get to make your own character, and then have a big, open-world city to run around in. Freedom Force was a step in the right direction, but more of a hybrid strategy game than RPG at the end of the day. The MMOs are interesting, in theory, but suffer from the typical MMO problems. That is, they're MMOs.

Cyberpunk doesn't get much love, either. A real Shadowrun game would scratch that itch fairly well.

Steampunk. We need Arcanum 2!

Any more? More importantly, is there any hope for them, indie or mainstream?

I think there is elements of horror in a lot of RPG's out there, but I think there is an inherent problem to pulling a pure horror RPG off. A good RPG is supposed to give you a sense of progression - that you are getting stronger as you gain experience and levels. Horror games need to rely on sudden death and the fear of what you might encounter around the corner, behind a door, etc. If you have built a strong character in a horror RPG, that level of fear can melt away, replaced with a sense of power.

One genre I would like to see explored with more pure RPG characteristics is the old west. You could make a pretty cool cowboy style RPG. Red Dead Redemption had a few very weak RPG elements, but it could definitely be improved upon!

Red Dead Redemption was the reason, and the only reason I bought a PS3, after pc users were lied to and it never came to fruition for us. I've played other games on the ps3 since, but that was the reason I got it. I think a solid rpg western would do quite well for the pc, something along RDR or GTA lines. If a big company won't do it, let an indie step up an show em how it's done! I'd buy it on principle alone.


-Carn

rossrjensen said:

One genre I would like to see explored with more pure RPG characteristics is the old west. You could make a pretty cool cowboy style RPG.

Click to expand...

A thousand hells of yes.

Magic realism and its cousins, contemporary fantasy and urban fantasy. The japanese seem to love the style and the genre, but even among them there are precious few role playing games on it. And in the west they are almost unheard of, only Bloodlines comes to mind.

Then, fairies. By which I mean fairy lore as a setting, fairy lore as an aesthetic, and/or mechanics based on actual fairy lore. And it can be coupled with magic realism and its cousins for maximum awesome, kind of resulting in something similar to Changeling The Dreaming.

That aside, what the world really needs is an Umineko No Naku Koro Ni role playing game, as it is part of the setting that the actually important battles are duels of twisted logic fought in the metaworld. Which means it would need a combat engine and a set of combat mechanics based completely around argumentation, kind of, like... Beatrice-Sama uses yet another closed room murder! Ushiromiya Battler counters! Ushiromiya Battler uses Probatio Diabolica! Beatrice-Sama counters! Beatrice-Sama uses Hempel's Raven! It's super effective! Ushiromiya Battler loses five sanity points! Ushiromiya Battler starts crying! Beatrice-Sama cackles!

And it fits perfectly with the magic realism genre and style I was just talking about. It's kind of a shame it will never happen.

rossrjensen said:

I think there is elements of horror in a lot of RPG's out there, but I think there is an inherent problem to pulling a pure horror RPG off. A good RPG is supposed to give you a sense of progression - that you are getting stronger as you gain experience and levels.

Click to expand...

It's not the sort of thing that would attract the munkin-gamer, naturally, but I think it could work. You'd have to focus more on escape and survival than pure combat, at least initially, but you would still get a sense of progression over time as you gained the skills to take on at least some of the beasties that initially chased you off, and there's always human foes (cultists, zombies, etc.) to serve as mooks. It would be hard to do really well, I admit.

It is the kind of game that would probably end up like Planescape Torment; critically loved, but with no mainstream success. Definitely an indie genre.

Definitely agree on the Old West! I'm not sure how much RPG scope there is in the historical, or even Hollywood historical, version. I doubt you'd get one without some added fantasy or sci-fi elements.

Conspiracy theory worlds, a la The Illuminati trilogy, would be fun. Secret World is going that way but it would be neat to see that genre taken on by an RPG with a strong story.

Talking about the old west, an open world game in the old west with a Kung Fu drifter having a dark and strange past sound good . One can have melee martial art, swords, combined with magic, herbs for healing, companions .. etc.

The rpg genre could use some more rpg love. Seems to be a movement to action adventure with rpg elements.Just my opinion.

Another vote here for an Old west style RPG. Maybe something with just a dash of fantasy or steampunk mixed in.

As much as I like horror, it's not a genre that mixes well with crpgs imo. The problem is that true horror is better suited for shorter experiences. Given that most crpgs are at least 40+ hours long, I think it would be next to impossible to substain that kind of feeling throughout the game.

Interesting settings:

Indian tribes in North and South America (maybe before the white man came around)
Vikings
Old China
Medieval Germany (like Darklands)
Migration Period in Europe -> Barbarian invasions into the Roman Empire
Pirates in the Caribbean Sea
"Modern" crpg in Berlin, London, Paris, New York, Moscow...
"Film Noir" setting
Raymond E. Feist & Janny Wurts -> Mara, Mistress of the Empire setting
Battle of Troja
Greek Mythology -> Jason and the Golden Fleece
Romulus & Remus
Aeneid (epic poem by Vergil)
...

HiddenX said:

Old China

Click to expand...

As a seeting ancient china isn't really lacking in role playing game love. If you can read chinese at least well enough to get the general gist of things and have a good dictionary to help you there are a great many really good games to play, usually in the historical romance and historical fantasy genres.

Unfortunately I can only read German, English & Latin.

I'd like to see a good rpg set in

a future medieval-analogue empire built on the remains of a previous, more sophisticated human galaxy-spanning civilization

Click to expand...

So… Fading suns. It's an interesting setting where superstition and fear of dark beings lurking between the stars rule the general population - and where those superstitions and fears not not entirely paranoid but sometimes quite justified. True understanding of the technologies and sciences developed during the height of human civilization have become jealously guarded secrets held by the few willing to dedicate their lives to understanding something the Church considers blasphemous; to the faithful an engineer's work is just as dangerous, arcane, and real as the miracles performed by priests or the vile powers of psychics. Those in the Empire with the luxury of seeing the world shades of gray rather than black and white are few and privileged. Even the poorest serf considers themselves lucky though - not to be in one of the countless worlds forgotten and lost beyond the strict but loving mercies of the church; they find comfort in considering that they at least are not damned.

HiddenX said:

Raymond E. Feist

Click to expand...

I'd be happy with a graphically upgraded Betrayal at Krondor.

HiddenX said:

Unfortunately I can only read German, English & Latin.

Click to expand...

Is that all?

Menigal said:

Steampunk. We need Arcanum 2!

Click to expand...

I so agree with this.

A starflight utilizing modern day technology

Vampire RPG.
Pirate RPG.

You've got Risen 2 coming later this year!!

Yeah I'm looking forward to that.
I'm also looking for survival RPG. The kind that matches Robinson's Requiem.

or perhaps alternate history. Not sure which timeline would be great, but it's great if we can change history by playing the nameless guy who changed how it unfold.